Small Kittens Trapped in Boom Lift Rescued by Animal Rescue Officers

Boom lifts can make interesting noises, but tiny meows are most assuredly not one of them. So when a good Samaritan heard cat cries coming from inside a piece of construction equipment, they called the Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA in Burlingame, California.

Animal rescue and control officers arrived on the scene in Redwood City with a portable inspection camera to determine how many cats were trapped inside and what their rescue mission would entail. They discovered three little kittens stuck inside the boom lift. How they got in there, no one knows, and the mama cat was nowhere to be found.

It took an officer nearly an hour to get the kittens out, said Buffy Martin Tarbox, communications manager for the Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA. "Because the space was so small, she had to crawl underneath the boom lift with a modified bird net and bring them out one by one," Tarbox explained.

The 3-week-old kittens were, amazingly, all in good shape despite their predicament and sustained no injuries. The kitties—who have since been named John, Wendy, and Peter—are currently being cared for at the Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA nursery, where they'll stay until they are big enough (2 pounds) to be placed for adoption.

The call for help from the person who heard the kitties most certainly saved their young lives, Tarbox said, as it alerted trained professionals to get them to safety. "If they had not been rescued from the boom lift, it is almost certain they would have perished,”she said. “There was no food or water and with the rising heat index, their chance of survival would not have been good.”

Tarbox said that if people ever find themselves in a similar situation—whether they see or hear an animal in distress—they should call the proper authorities. "You should call your local animal control as soon as possible," she said. "We depend on the public notifying us if there are animals that need help."